Work:

“A Necessary Evil?”
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The Big Picture
Recently, a Christian acquaintance who was becoming increasingly frustrated in his work, blurted out to me
“I don’t know if what I am doing in my work is real ministry. I’d like to look at jobs in the ministry world where I
could really serve God.”

Another person discouraged at work and facing difficult challenges yearns for what is called a “more mean-
ingful job in full-time ministry.”

Both of these people struggle with their roles in what they regard as unfulfilling “secular” work and desire
instead to labor in what is perceived as more significant “full-time Christian ministry.”

According to surveys, 3 out of 5 American workers are dissatisfied with their jobs—a dissatisfaction caused
not only by issues of pay or promotion, but also by a general sense of unhappiness and unimportance. These statistics
apply to Christians as well, and for many of them this general sense of unhappiness stems from their view that work
is a necessary evil, something required to make a living and unrelated to their real God-ordained purpose.

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Life and How We Live It

ß How do you view your work—as a necessary evil or just a way to make money?

ß How do you think God views your work?

ß Would you consider yourself to be in “full-time” Christian work at your current job?

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Truth and How We Apply It
1. The heart of our faith is to know God intimately.
2. Work has great value, for God Himself is a worker, both in creation and in saving his people.
ß Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
ß Genesis 1:31 - 2:2 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and
there was morning— the sixth day. 1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast ar-
ray. 2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested
from all his work.
ß John 5:17 Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am work-
ing.”

. . 1.
. . Our
. . .work
. . is. holy
. . because
. . . . God
. . calls
. . .us.to.join
. .with
. . Him
. . .in .His. .work.
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© 2003 The Marketplace Community 
 ß Genesis 1:28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth
and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that
moves on the ground.”
ß Genesis 2:15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care
of it.
ß Ephesians 2:10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God
prepared in advance for us to do.

1. All work is God’s work—He does not differentiate “secular” from “ministry.”
ß Colossians 3:23-24 23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for
men, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord
Christ you are serving.

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The Bottom Line
Work is given to us by God and filled with divine meaning and purpose; it is not a “necessary evil” to be
endured. God wants us to participate with Him in His labor and as such, our work is a holy occupation—where there
is no barrier between “secular” and “full-time ministry.” God intends our jobs and careers as divinely appointed op-
portunities to do meaningful and significant things for His glory.

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Brain-Storming
ß What is your company’s mission? What is your role within that mission? What is the role God has given you
in your job?

ß How does this understanding of your dual roles—company and divine—impact your perspective on your
work?

ß How do you deal with any tension that might arise from wanting to fulfill God’s role at work while perhaps
feeling unfulfilled and dissatisfied with your current role within the company?

ß How do you accurately discern God’s role for you at work?

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Action
Take a moment to pray with one another and to ask God to show you what His role is for you at your job.
Invite God to work through you in ways you might not yet even know.

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 © 2003 The Marketplace Community
Next Steps
Ask the Holy Spirit’s help in making a spiritual inventory of your work this week to discover areas where He
is at work through you. Write it out. Pray over it, and then keep it someplace where you can look at it again in 1 month,
6 months, and then a year. Look back at it in a year and ask the Lord for His performance review.

What are the opportunities He has given in your job to be a shining example of His nature and of His work
in your life? Why do you think the Lord has given you this particular career and job? In what areas do you excel, and
how can God be seen in those areas of your work? What are the most significant challenges you face in working for
the Lord on your job?

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© 2003 The Marketplace Community